Rochester Tops Charlotte to Pull into Tie With Denver

Justin Turri and Rochester pulled
into a tie for first with Denver by taking a 15-13 win over
Charlotte on the road. (Bob Markey II)

A third straight win drops the Rattlers into a tie for first
place with the Denver Outlaws at 7-3 after Rochester held off the
Hounds in a 15-13 win Saturday night on the road.

Team leading scorer Justin Turri, game MVP Jordan Wolf and Mark
Cockerton each had a hat trick to lead the way, while balance was a
key to the offense, with 11 players either scoring or assisting a
goal for Rochester. John Galloway also had an extremely stingy
night in net, stopping 17 in the 60 minutes of work.

Charlotte, which falls to 4-6 on the season along with Ohio and
Florida, got three goals and an assist from Justin Ward and three
goals, including a 2-point strike, from fellow Loyola alum Mike
Sawyer.

Rochester had taken control early, having scored first, then
pulled out for good late in the first quarter when back-to-back
goals from Wolf and Turri (off a Miles Thompson feed) to close the
quarter and then another to open the second from Turri turned a 3-3
tie into a 6-3 advantage for the Rattlers that they never
relinquished. At the half, after another three goal run down the
stretch, Rochester led 10-5.

Sawyer had a pair of goals, including his 2-pointer, as
Charlotte got a goal back with a 3-2 third, then pulled back to
within two on back-to-back goals by Matt Danowski and Jake Tripucka
before Rochester put it back out of reach with three of the next
four goals to lead 15-11 with just two minutes left to play. Ward
scored two late, but time ran out on the Hounds before they could
get any closer.

Rochester gets back to action looking to
keep pace with the Outlaws, taking on Chesapeake on July 17th on
the road. Charlotte, a game out of the No. 4 playoff spot with four
games to go, travels to Ohio for its next contest on Saturday, July
19th.